Cover Story
I Survived an Eclipse (And You Can Too!)
“R eef! Whoa! Stop!” The boat came to an abrupt halt as the captain reversed the engines and backed off the reef, just a few meters away. “That was a close call,” said David Blackmore, my 61-year-old British travel companion and part-time Central Oregon resident. “It could have been disastrous. Boats capsize on a regular…
Warm Springs Fire Update – Crews Make Progress, Level 3 Evacuation Lifted
Rain, cooler temperatures and hard work by firefighters prevented the fire burning at Warm Springs Reservation, dubbed the Nena Spring Fire, from spreading on Sunday. Crews were able to safely access significant areas of un-contained perimeters, due to the colder and wetter conditions. According to the Oregon State Fire Marshal, firefighters made progress around the…
Bend Brewfest ’17: The Cheat Sheet
F or beer fans, August will be a difficult month to go on a diet. That’s because the local area will play host to two separate enormous beer festivals—the Bend Brewfest, starting Thursday and going ’til Saturday late night, and the Redmond Brewfest next week, just in time for eclipse traffic. The year 2017 marks…
Beloved Bartender
R ecognize this guy? He’s Josh Behrens, named the best bartender in Bend, crowned at the Bartender’s Brawl finale at the Bite of Bend. To earn his title, he had to woo the judges with six different cocktails at two separate events. Behrens has worked around the bar since he was 19. He started as…
Natural World: Beware: Looking out for sticky wasp traps
A s if wild birds don’t have enough to cope with in trying to keep from being killed by those giant windmills used to create electricity, with the overdone night lights that confuse them while trying to migrate, the tall glass buildings they run into and the poisons used in agriculture, along comes what was…
Hella Swag
Y ou may have already started to see it: eclipse merchandise, taking Central Oregon by celestial storm. Everywhere you look, you’re bound to find jewelry, T-shirts ranging from the basic to design-forward, collectable coins and of course, the now infamous viewing glasses. Drive down Third Street in Bend and you can spot reader boards boasting,…
It Ain’t All Sunny When Prepping for the Eclipse
On a normal day, about 200,000 folks call Deschutes, Crook and Jefferson counties home. And in about one week, the Deschutes County Sheriff’s office estimates an extra 200,000 people will begin flowing into the area to experience the Great American Eclipse taking place Aug. 21. Regionally, the Oregon Department of Transportation estimates a whopping 1…
Fires, Crops and other Concerns
G ateway is a small farming community about 11 miles north of Madras, boasting a population of 50 residents, plus or minus a few. It’s where Marla Rae and her family have been farming for over six generations—so needless to say, Rae knows the community and the surrounding area well. At the moment, much attention…
I Survived an Eclipse in Central Oregon
I t was February of 1979 and my husband and I had moved to Bend just a few months before. I was studying for the bar exam in Portland, leaving Bend on Monday mornings and returning home on Fridays. Monday, Feb. 26, 1979, was a little different than most of my trips over the mountain…
We’ve hit peak “us vs. them” ire. Is this who we want to be?
W hen someone vandalizes a beloved landmark, the reaction is usually disgust, mixed with a dose of “Oh, that was just kids being dumb kids.” Vandalism, as a whole, is not something people who care about their town and their quality of life typically condone. That is, unless that vandalism contains a message against tourists.…
Picks of the Week: August 9-16
Thursday 10 – Saturday 12 Bend Brewfest BEER! — This family-friendly annual event celebrates all that is brewed and fermented. Head down to the Amphitheater for 200+ craft beers, wines and ciders—and if you hang out late, get ready to dance off all of those calories you just took in with a DJ playing your…
Summer In the City
“D etroit” is the best movie I’ll never watch again. Just like “The Passion of the Christ” or “Enter the Void,” the film is designed to make the audience feel something deeply, as opposed to being something one could remotely define as “entertainment.” While “Detroit” feels like something important that everyone across the country should…
There Are Other Worlds Than These
I n the movie, “Contact,” Jodie Foster sees alien life for the first time and utters one of the best lines in movie history: “They should have sent a poet.” That’s how I feel after watching Sony’s adaptation of Stephen King’s eight-book series, “The Dark Tower.” I have neither the vocabulary nor room to tear…
Vape like a bong and do it in style
I f you are anything like me (and by all that is holy, please let that not be the case) you’ve probably said to yourself many times: “Sure, I enjoy vaping, but, by God, I enjoy my bong, too. Won’t someone think of my needs, the vape- friendly bong lover?” Dear reader, your voice has…
Electronic Experimentation
W hen it comes to the electronic and bass music scene, Zeke Beats continues to rise in the ranks, creating beats using digital and hardware synthesizers—his preferred method of artistry. He creates sounds, chops them up and uses them in a beat. Always experimenting, Zeke believes the best things come from good accidents. The Australian-born…
Source Spotlight: Michael LaLonde
I t’s the biggest single project we’ve ever done as a company, so we’re putting a lot of planning and thought into it, making sure we do it right. — Michael LaLonde Just before Michael LaLonde’s interview for the position of chief financial officer at Deschutes Brewery 12 and a half years ago, he pulled…
Eclipse Road Closures in the Deschutes National Forest
Officials from the Deschutes National Forest have announced a number of road closures for eclipse week, including: Bend Fort Rock Ranger District eclipse closures: Forest Road 370 – one way starting at Todd Lake, Aug 17-21 Paulina Peak Road. (Forest Road 500) – closed at sunset Aug 20, until 1 pm Aug. 21 Lava Butte…
The Decline of Cookie Cutter Homes
W hen helping people find a home, I often hear “I don’t want a cookie cutter home.” A cookie cutter home typically refers to a tract-type homes that look pretty much the same from the exterior. Many of these homes were built after World War II when there was high demand and a low supply…
Letters to the Editor: July 31-August 7
In Response to, Smoke Signals’ Race Bias and Words Matter (7/19) Thank you. I appreciated the space and words dedicated to the remembrance of Mr. Castillo. I am guessing that you did not even think you were even going to be arrested, let alone jailed. Considering the one-is-too-many but still very high number of people…
Jamming in North Lake County
B en Rougeou, a talented bass player from New Orleans who played with a band called Ma Fondue, loved the Christmas Valley Music Festival. Last year, suffering from cancer, he made the trip out. He got out of bed, sat on his chair, played the concert, and at the end of the night, stood up…
Little Bites: Bend’s Paleo Eats Heads to Norway
P aleo Eats makes great-tasting Paleo energy bars in Bend, and they’ve hit it big this year. They landed on the exclusive top three list of Paleo bars on the market by Paleo Magazine and now the nutritious bars are headed overseas to Norway. All three Paleo Eats flavors—chai spice, coconut-cacoa and coffee bean—started selling…
Science Advice Goddess: Penis on the Half Shell
Penis On The Half-Shell A guy my girlfriend dated seven years ago is now an aspiring artist, and he gave my girlfriend one of his paintings. It’s abstract, splashy, and horrible. I find it disrespectful of him to give it to her (because she’s in a relationship). She said he does lots of paintings, sells…
Little Bites: Northwest-Inspired Delicatessen Coming to SE Bend this Fall
W ild Oregon Foods, a Northwest-inspired delicatessen, is set to open in the Bend Factory Stores shopping center this fall. The delicatessen aims to bring fresh, locally sourced products to some of our favorite traditional delicatessen dishes. Wild Oregon Foods will offer a small market for grab-and-go snacks, beer and wine, as well as counter…
New Poetry Book from Ellen Waterston
T he creative work of Ellen Waterston never stops for long—if ever, whether she’s converting her verse into a libretto or overseeing operations in her new role as executive director at Playa, an arts and science retreat in Summer Lake, Ore. The longtime Oregon resident has just released her fourth book of poetry, “Hotel Domilocos:…
